ON COURSE WITH NATURE.

Archive for the month “January, 2019”

[Advayavada Study Plan – week 5] In Secular Buddhism generally, firmly bearing in mind the impermanence of everything and the selflessness and emptiness (and, therefore, finitude) of all things, the focus is on the correct interpretation and realization of the historical Buddha’s so-called ‘four noble truths’: 1) that of the ubiquity of existential suffering in the world, 2) that ignorant craving and attachment are the actual and immediate causes of such suffering, 3) that this suffering shall cease altogether when we deal with and overcome its causes, and 4) that the sure way to achieve this is by following the Noble Eightfold Path, which, in Advayavada Buddhism, is understood dynamically, as an ongoing and fully autonomous, non-prescriptive, investigative and creative process of progressive insight, reflecting in human terms wondrous overall existence becoming over time in its manifest direction, this evolution or progress being, then, the fourth sign or mark or basic fact of being. It is composed stepwise of (1) our very best (samma in Pali and samyak in Sanskrit) comprehension or insight, followed by (2) our very best resolution or determination, (3) our very best enunciation or definition (of our intention), (4) our very best disposition or attitude, (5) our very best implementation or realization, (6) our very best effort or commitment, (7) our very best observation, reflection or evaluation and self-correction, and (8) our very best meditation or concentration towards an increasingly real experience of samadhi, which brings us to (1) a yet better comprehension or insight, and so forth. Feel free to share this post.

All of us come to the Dharma with various degrees of wrong views, previous tendencies and conditioning, false identities, afflicted emotions, and extremely sensitive egos. It takes time and effort to leave them behind, or at least transform them sufficiently so that they are no longer a gross impediment on the path to enlightenment. If […]

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What is meant by dependent origination? It means that nothing included within inner or outer phenomena has arisen without a cause. Neither have they originated from what are not their causes; that is, noncauses such as a permanent creator, the self, time, or an almighty deity.

The fact that phenomena arise based on the interdependence of their respective causes and conditions coming together is called dependent origination.

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[Advayavada Study Plan – week 4] Non-liberated human beings are essentially prone to existential suffering (see week 3) because they wrongly strive after and try to hold on to things, concepts and situations which they believe to be permanent, but are not. Their mistaken view of things is produced by a thirst, craving or clinging (tanha in Pali, trishna in Sanskrit) which is in turn caused by their fundamental ignorance (avijja in Pali, avidya in Sanskrit) or disbelief of the true nature of existence, particularly the impermanence and changeability of everything (see week 1) and the selflessness and emptiness (and, therefore, finitude) of all things (see week 2). This thirst, craving or clinging, which is the second noble truth of Buddhism, blinds them to the actual wonders and blessings of overall existence and can moreover easily take on a more unwholesome form: already as sensuous desire, ill-will (vyapada), laziness, impatience or distrust will it seriously hinder the individual’s efforts to better his or her circumstances, as well as contaminate the efforts of others to improve theirs. To avoid all this, Advayavada Buddhism, on its part, invites us all to instead intelligently make the very best of our own lives by attuning as best as possible with actual wondrous overall existence advancing over time now in its manifest direction, and we do this by conscientiously following our personalized Noble Eightfold Path (see coming week 5). Feel free to share this post.

[Advayavada Study Plan – week 3] Dukkha (Pali) or duhkha (Sanskrit) means suffering, sorrow, dissatisfaction, frustration, anxiety, or stress; it is the first of the four noble truths of Buddhism and also the third of the three or, in Advayavada Buddhism, four signs or marks or basic facts of being, the other three being the impermanence or changeability of everything (see week 1), the selflessness and emptiness of all things (see week 2), and evolution or, in human terms, progress (see coming weeks 4 and 5). In Advayavada Buddhism, dukkha or duhkha does not include, in the context of the four noble truths, emotional grief nor physical pain, which are part and parcel of human existence, and it is, above all, not seen as a permanent or inevitable feature of reality; it is chiefly understood in said context as the existential distress and distrust of life non-liberated human beings are prone to and which are essentially caused by the unhealthy and socially infectious feeling that reality does not conform to their petty desires and mistaken expectations. The ubiquity and unremitting persistency of human distress, alienation and conflict is undeniably especially due to the very many everywhere in the world not being taught or not comprehending or simply disbelieving and denying the basically impermanent and finite nature of their individual existence. Advayavada Buddhism, on its part, invites us all to instead intelligently make the very best of our own finite lives by attuning as best as possible with actual wondrous overall existence advancing over time now in its manifest direction. We do this by conscientiously following the Noble Eightfold Path. Feel free to share this post.

[Advayavada Study Plan – week 2] As already explained, Advayavada Buddhism does not tell you what to do or believe, but invites us all to make the very best of our own lives by attuning as best as possible with wondrous overall existence advancing over time now in its manifest direction. The 13-week Advayavada Study Plan (ASP) is repeated four times a year for this lofty purpose and the second preliminary subject of this first quarter of the new year is again anatta (Pali) or anatman (Sanskrit), which literally means no-self and is traditionally considered the second of the three (in Advayavada Buddhism, four) signs or marks or basic facts of being. The Buddhist anatta or anatmata doctrine teaches that no soul, spirit or self exists in the person in the sense of a permanent, eternal, integral, and independent substance. In Mahayana Buddhism, the nissvabhava doctrine teaches further that, as in fact all things without exception are produced by interdependent origination, every single thing is therefore empty (shunya) of self-nature (svabhava); svabhava-shunyata (lit. self-nature emptiness) is a central notion in Madhyamaka philosophy: in Advayavada Buddhism, the selflessness of all existents is one of the four signs or marks or basic facts of being, the other three being the impermanence or changeability of everything (see week 1), the ubiquity of existential suffering (see next week), and evolution or, in human terms, progress (see the week after that). Feel free to share this post. ~ advayavada.org/#plan advayavada.wordpress.com/